Tragedy struck Bethesda, MD, last week, when 17-year-old Navid Nicholas Sepehri was discovered, face-up and unmoving, in a shallow stream. The high school senior had attended an underage drinking party on Saturday night, which was broken up by police at approximately 10:40pm. Sepehri spoke with officers at the scene as they ordered the party to vacate, but left the location with a group of friends; he was in a state described as “obviously intoxicated.”
When Navid didn’t actually return home, his father Farshid Sepehri began searching, before dawn on Sunday. Eventually, 18 hours after the end of the party, Farshid found Navid’s body, half a mile away. A bottle of vodka was in his pocket.
Almost a week would pass until the exact cause of death was determined, prompting Farshid to beseech the community for more information, looking for any witnesses who were there or had more information about the circumstances around the party. Finally, on December 16th, cause of death was determined as “a combination of alcohol poisoning, drowning, and hypothermia.”
When: The party occurred on December 9th, Navid’s body was found by his father on the afternoon of December 10th.
Where: Bethesda, MD. Navid is a senior at Walt Whitman High School. The party was held at a private home on Elgin Lane. Navid was found approximately ½ a mile away, behind Bannockburn Swim Club.
Curious details: The private home was that of Austrian diplomat Christian Grinschgl and an unnamed woman. It’s unclear how the teenagers obtained the alcohol. No arrests were made when police showed up, nor were any parents called, although attendees were told to call their parents. Navid was reported as a missing person at 12:46pm by an individual whom the police have not yet named.
Farshid Sepehri continues to question why no arrests have been made in the case thus far.
